To:
Ventura County Board of Supervisors

Ban Fracking in Ventura County

Fracking is an inherently dangerous threat to our air, water and health. Ban fracking now.

Why is this important?

Fracking is a toxic method of oil and gas extraction that involves blasting vast quantities of water and toxic chemicals deep underground--and it's endangering countless Californians' health, safety and livelihoods.

Big Oil has plans to massively expand fracking in a huge section of the state--roughly 1,750 square miles from Southern to Central California, from Modesto to San Diego County--putting our precious water, our farms, and our health at risk.

Big Oil will tell you that this is not new, that fracking has been going on for 60 years. But the fracking process of today IS different, here's how: both the volume of fracking fluids and flow-back that occurs in these wells is 50 to 100 times more than what was used in conventional wells. The rock above the target zone is not necessarily impervious the way it was in conventional wells. That last point is at least as big a problem as the volume. Big Oil will tell you that the mile or two between the zone that's being fracked is not going to let anything come up. But there are already cases where the methane gas has made it up into the aquifers and atmosphere through old well bores or natural fissures in the rock. No one knows how much gas is going to come up over time. It's a point of concern for many citizens: it's not just what's happening today. Fracking is opening up channels for the methane gas to creep up to the surface and into the atmosphere. Methane is an even more potent greenhouse gas in the short term than carbon dioxide.

In the last ten years, fracking has expanded rapidly in states like Pennsylvania, North Dakota, Texas and Colorado. Residents living near fracking operations suffer from constant noise and light pollution, endless diesel truck traffic, toxic spills, contaminated water, dangerous air pollution and falling property values.

If fracking continues to expand, it could spell ruin for California farmers. Even in times of drought the fracking industry regularly outbids farmers for water rights, increasing the price of water and directly jeopardizing their livelihood. And the toxic chemicals and heavy metals associated with fracking operations can contaminate the soil, air and water, leach into crops and kill livestock.

But despite the clear risks posed to Californians by the oil industry's plans to frack our state, legislation that would have placed a moratorium on fracking died in the Assembly and Governor Brown appears eager to encourage the expansion of this toxic industry.

That's why we have to take matters into our own hands to ban fracking at the local level. Cities and counties in California have broad authority to ban fracking and we should pressure our elected officials to step in where state government has failed to act.

Local bans on fracking may also be one of the most effective strategies for winning change at the state level. If a wave of cities and counties in California reject fracking, it will put increased pressure on Governor Brown to ban fracking in all of California.

Hundreds of communities across the country, from New York and New Mexico, to Pennsylvania, Ohio and Colorado, have successfully passed local bans or moratoriums on fracking in order to protect their homes and pressure state officials to act.

Now it's up to us. Please sign my petition and help me ban fracking in our community. Together, we can pressure our elected officials to act.